JUNE
24, 2002--Physics major Chris Kelly '03 is spending the summer looking
at magnetic nanoparticles--very small particles of iron with unusual magnetic
characteristics.

"Our research
is primarily concerned with finding new types of magnets," says Yumi Ijiri,
assistant professor of physics and Kelly's honors advisor. "Ultimately,
these materials can be used to create computers that allow us to store
more data in a smaller space. It might also be possible to use nanoparticles
as localized heaters to kill cancer cells or address hypothermia."

Before this technology
can be put to use, however, scientists need to get a better idea of how
atoms communicate with each other, and how they become magnetic at a microscopic
level. Ijiri's research will add to the growing body of literature on
this topic, and contribute specific information about how the size and
shape of nanoparticles influence their behavior.

"We can use these
nanoparticles to test how magnets behave if you make them smaller," says
Ijiri. "In other words, at what size does a particle become magnetic?
And what interactions occur to make this happen? The study of these nanometer-size
materials is part of a growing interest in what's now called nanoscience
or nanotechnology."

Ijiri's experiments
have produced data that clarifies how nanoparticles "talk" to each other.
Using the physics department's new magnetometer, obtained through a grant
from National Science Foundation, she will be able to get a better picture
of the overall magnetic properties of nanoparticles and how they interact
with one another. She has also participated in neutron scattering experiments
at the National Institute
of Standards and Technology's Center for Neutron Research in order
to understand more about these interactions.